Canadians still want mail, but are okay with getting it less often: Poll

BNN.ca Staff

Canada Post boxes
, The Canadian Press

Canadians still want door-to-door mail service but a majority are in favour of less frequent deliveries, according to a new survey from the Angus Reid Institute.

Poll results released Thursday revealed that 77 per cent of respondents believe “Canada Post is an essential service and should maintain its current service levels” but 61 per cent like the idea of changing delivery from five to three days a week.

A majority of urban residents surveyed were against the idea of community mailboxes, with 54 per cent expressing opposition.

Changes to Canada Post’s delivery were initiated by Stephen Harper’s Conservative government but were put on hold when Justin Trudeau’s Liberals won a majority in the 2015 federal election.

Opinions on mail service remain divided along party lines, as Angus Reid’s most recent data found 52 per cent of Conservative voters polled were in favour of an end to door-to-door delivery. Liberal and NDP voters were largely opposed, though, with 57 and 62 per cent of respondents, respectively.

One thing most in the survey could get behind, however, was a dislike for an increase to the price of postage. Increasing the price of stamps was disliked by 83 per cent of respondents, with 45 per cent of all respondents responding with ‘dislike a lot’ when asked about their feelings.